Everything
by Meandmysarcasm
Summary: Belle's POV of her life in the Dark Castle with Rumplestiltskin after she makes her deal with him. Covers all of their time in the Enchanted Forest before the first curse
1. Chapter 1: Desperate Times

She sat in the council room with the others with pursed lips, hardly daring to breathe. Her heart thudded in her throat and try as she might, she couldn't help but count each one off, because she knew she might not have many left.

Outside, the crashes continued on. She'd woken in the middle of the night, tangled in blankets and for one crazy moment she believed it was just a passing storm.

No, her father had told her. He had tried to smile, but she could see the pain behind it. He looked as though he'd aged overnight. New lines creased his face and she swore she could pick out a stream of silver hairs framing his face whenever he took off his cap. How much had this war cost him?

How much had this war cost them _all_? Belle forced her mind to turn away from the thought, feeling the pain stab at her heart like a shard of ice.

 _Mother,_ she thought. _What would you do in my shoes?_

She choked down her tears and tried to concentrate on the page before her. If she could just find an answer… Frustration jarred at her and the lines of cramped handwriting began to merge into one.

Belle slammed the book closed with a gasp. She held the spine so tightly that her knuckles turned white.

Ridiculous that her books could offer her nothing now, in the most dire of moments! How many times had she turned to them, for comfort, for solace, for help? Hmph.

Not that she could read at a moment like this. She could feel the tension radiating from Gaston and her father, the quick exchange of glances when they thought nobody was watching. They wouldn't share their concerns with her. They wouldn't want her to worry her pretty little head about it. Yet Belle noticed the way Gaston's hand kept moving towards his sword. Part of her wanted to laugh at him, tell him that it would do no good. Hadn't he ever seen an ogre before?

But a larger part of her brain yearned for hope, even the faintest trace of it, so she kept silent. Besides, she reasoned, at least when Gaston's mind was on fighting he wouldn't be wasting his time complaining at Belle for reading. A small frown crossed her face. To think that she would ever agree to marry a man who didn't own a _single_ book.

Still, it kept her father happy. Gaston came from a good family, a powerful one. And her father needed all of the alliances he could get these days. Many of the villagers had already fled, determined to escape the dreaded draft laws. Belle couldn't blame them. They needed to survive, any way they could. And so she'd agreed when Gaston asked for her hand in marriage, because that was a kind of survival too. Her father needed this from her; he needed to know that his family would live on even if the ogres stormed the castle. He wanted someone younger to look out for his daughter, someone who could protect her from the monsters and ensure that she lived a long and prosperous life.

Even if that wasn't what she wanted.

Another crash reverberated around the room, drawing her away from her thoughts. The door to the council room burst open, revealing a young soldier carrying a map. His eyes were wide and wild and his lips trembled as he hastened to speak.

"The… the map… m'lord. As… as you requested." He gave a curt bow, the chainmail around his neck clicking together.

Belle stood up as he snatched the map from the soldier's hands and rolled it out on the desk, shoving away the wine glasses and plates. They fell to the floor and for a moment the hideous noises beyond the castle walls were accompanied by the tinkle of broken crockery. Belle's heart gave an uneasy stutter.

"Sir, there is news from the battlefield," said another soldier. "Avonlea has fallen."

Belle sucked in a breath and turned to her father. He seemed to visibly shrink in his robes as he absorbed the news.

Their worst nightmare.

Avonlea had fallen. The ogres were gaining ground quicker than they could ever have anticipated. And that meant… Well, nothing stood between the castle and Avonlea now. The ogres would come for her family next, and when they were done it would be like their whole kingdom had never even existed.

"My Gods," her father breathed.

For a moment nobody said anything. Everyone just stood around the council table, unable to shake off the sense of impending doom that now permeated the air. Belle stared down at the map. The tiny wooden soldiers on it reminded her of the board games her family would sometimes play years ago, long before the ogres began to threaten the kingdom.

Gaston broke the silence.

"If only he had come," he said.

Another heavy pause. Belle could feel the bitter undercurrent of his words directed at her. A brief flicker of fury burned inside her. As if she could be blamed because the Dark One didn't turn up? At least she was _trying_ to save them all.

 _No,_ she told herself sternly. That wasn't fair. Gaston's responsibilities were right here, helping her father; being his right hand man. Directing their armies against the ogres.

If only she could take his place. Belle shook her head and glanced back down at the pile of unread books on her table. They expected nothing of her, nothing at all. And that was the worst part of it, because she knew that underneath Gaston's blame lay a world of exasperation. He'd _expected_ her to fail. Because she was a girl and girls couldn't do anything for their kingdoms except marry into good families.

Belle bit her lip. Perhaps it was best that her idea hadn't worked out. Her books wrought strange and twisted tales about the Dark One. If she believed even half of them…

"Well he didn't, did he?" Her father suddenly burst out.

Gaston glanced up, shocked. Rarely did her father direct his rage at his future son-in-law. Belle watched the exchange, open-mouthed.

"Ogres are not men," her father continued, pacing.

"We have to do something," the soldier who had brought the map said. "We have to stop them."

 _As if we haven't been doing everything in our powers_ , she thought. Still, the soldiers needed courage. If they abandoned her family now, all hope would be lost.

Besides, she didn't think she could stand the expression on her father's face any longer.

 _We will defeat them,_ Belle wanted to cry out, but one glance at her father told her it would be useless to try and speak up now. He slouched on his throne, defeated.

"They are unstoppable," he groaned.

Belle stormed over to him. Her own rage lent her strength. What would her mother say if she saw them all standing around like this, with their shoulders slumped, ready to give up?

Then again, her mother would surely have found an answer long ago. She knew the library like the back of her hand, the way even Belle couldn't claim to know it. Given time, her mother would have found some arcane text that instructed their soldiers on all the ogres' weaknesses.

Given time. But there would be no time for her mother. Belle would just have to accept that her books couldn't provide the answers. That she really was as useless to her family now as Gaston and her father had always assumed her to be.

No, she thought. She couldn't just cower here and wait to die.

She knelt down by her father's chair and took his hand. His palm felt clammy and cold.

"He could be on his way right now, Papa," she urged.

Her father didn't even bother to meet her eyes.

"It's too late, my girl," he said. "It's just- too late."

She wanted to burst into tears, but she held herself in check. No point in getting them all riled up. She'd probably just be escorted back to her room and told to rest for a while.

And when she next woke up, she would be lucky if the castle still stood around her. _If_ she woke up again, of course.

She opened her mouth to argue, just as something pounded against the door. All heads whipped around to stare.

 _Could it be?_ For the first time since hearing the dreadful news, Belle felt a wild surge of triumph mixing with her desperation. The Dark One.

 _It must be him,_ she thought. _Nobody else would come near us at a time like this._

"It's him," she said, grabbing hold of her father's elbow as he rose to stand. Confidence flooded into her voice. "It has to be him."

"How could he get past the walls?" Her father demanded, though he strode towards the door all the same. He made a movement with his hands to the guards holding the wooden beam that barred the door. "Open it."

Belle sucked in a breath. Her father's arm trembled at her side, though his face remained impassive. Gaston pressed against her shoulder, going for his sword. The blade snicked as he pulled it from his scabbard. A useless precaution, of course. Belle could count the number of men who had stood up to the Dark One with their swords and fighting skills and won on one hand. And she wouldn't need any fingers to do so. Her books skirmished around the subject of the heroes after that, though she could assume they didn't live happily ever after.

The doors creaked. Anticipation zinged through her veins.

They all stared into the empty hallway.

Nobody there.


	2. Chapter 2: The Deal Is Struck

Belle fought to keep her emotions on a leash. Disappointment warred through her, battling her determination to be strong for her father's sake. She peered through the open doors, her heart racing, wanting to be _sure_ that she wasn't mistaken.

Crestfallen, she flicked her gaze towards her father.

"Well, that was a bit of a let-down," said a mocking voice from behind.

She whipped her head around, heart catching in her throat.

And then she came face to face with some _creature._

Although Belle's books were filled with knowledge about dark ones and their powers, none of them bothered with illustrations or even listing ways to spot them. The advice seemed to be that you were supposed to keep as far away from them as possible. Besides, she could almost feel his presence in the room and it had nothing to do with the sudden tense stances of the guards. No, she could sense the magic radiating from him, power almost as intoxicating as perfume.

The thing now sitting in her father's chair looked half like a man, and half like something else entirely. He had a man's body, a nose and a mouth and eyes. Two arms and two legs too. But he would never pass for a human. For one thing, his eyes were large and reptilian, his pupils only pinpoints swimming in the centre of his irises. And his skin… Belle chided herself. It was _wrong_ to stare, and she knew that she shouldn't, but it was hard to look away from the giggling creature in her father's chair when his skin was glittering, like gold dust under sunlight.

Gaston drew his sword, the blade snickering as he held it before him. This time, Belle couldn't blame him. Fear churned in her stomach, almost strong enough to erase the speech she'd fabricated in her mind, the one she'd prepared in case Rumplestiltskin showed up.

"You sent me a message—" the Dark One began, his hand doing some odd, swift movement in the air, like a fluttering bird. "Something about, um, help, help. We're dying. Can you save us?"

Belle flinched at the uncontrolled malice in his voice. He sounded exactly like the monster her books described. He didn't even seem to notice Gaston, who advanced towards him as he spoke. She turned her attention to her father instead, wondering if he would take Rumplestiltskin seriously. She couldn't be sure that he would, she knew how much he loathed being made fun of, but if he rejected the Dark One's aid…

"Now the answer is…" He continued, rising to his feet. He reached out a hand to slap away Gaston's sword, like a cat playing with a ball of yarn. "Yes. I can."

He threw one of her father's wooden soldiers towards a nearby guard. Belle's eyes narrowed. It wasn't like her to miss some sleight of hand. Unless he'd used his magic, of course.

She frowned. Apparently her books had decided to leave out the bit about him being a showman too. A pity. She could have used information like that to her advantage.

At the sight of Gaston's puzzled expression, Belle almost felt a pang of pity for him. His sword hovered by his side, as though he couldn't work out if he should keep it out or put it away. With each passing second, it became clearer and clearer that the blade didn't scare Rumplestiltskin in the slightest. For the first time in his life, Gaston probably felt as useless as Belle often did in this room.

"Yes, I can protect your little town," Rumplestiltskin continued, his hand curling in the air. He turned it into a finger, pointing towards her father.

Belle knew what he was going to say next, but the words still sent shivers down her spine.

"For a price."

Of course, someone as powerful as the Dark One never did anything for free. He convinced everyone to make deals with him, from princesses to shepherds, from witches to pirates. Nobody was exempt. And nobody ever truly understood the cost of their deal. They paid their side of the bargain, although Belle couldn't call to mind a single example in her books where they ended up better off.

This little piece of research should have made her change her mind about asking her father to call for Rumplestiltskin's aid. After all, even Anna, her old friend from Arendale, told her of the steep costs.

But if Belle and her family didn't pay the price, she doubted any of them would live to see the dawn.

"We sent you a promise of gold," her father cut in.

She resisted the urge to shake her head at that. Her father should have known better. All the rumours that reached Avonlea told of his strange magic, which could turn straw into gold.

Instead, Rumplestiltskin uttered her thoughts in his teasing voice, as though he'd read them straight from her mind. His voice dripped with condescension.

"Ah, no. You see, um, I uh _make_ gold. No, what I want is something a bit more _special._ "

His emphasis on the word turned Belle's stomach. What would he ask for? And more importantly, would they be able to meet his demands? Everything in their town depended on him now.

"My price… is her."

For a moment, the room seemed to spin. Belle's breath caught in her throat as he pointed straight at her, meeting her eyes for the first time. It took all of her concentration not to flinch under his reptilian gaze.

 _How ironic,_ she told herself sternly. _One moment you wish everyone would pay attention to you once in a while, and all of a sudden when your wish is granted, you don't want it any more._

But he couldn't mean… no, Belle shoved the thought away with a grimace. Women in this land expected to be used like a bargaining chip, frittered away by their families in advantageous marriages, but _this._ This made her feel like little more than a piece of meat. At least with Gaston there was a chance at a happy ending, some possibility that things would turn out okay. Could she say the same if she agreed to go with the Dark One? He seemed more like a creature than a man, after all. And she couldn't imagine doing all the things her mother used to whisper to her that men expected their wives to do, not to…to him.

Before she could open her mouth to speak, Gaston's arm forced her stumbling back. All eyes in the room fell on her, and she could feel herself beginning to blush at the attention. She kept her gaze fixed on Rumplestiltskin, half-hoping that he would burst into his childish laughter and tell them all he'd been playing a trick.

But he said nothing as her father and fiancé continued to stare at her. The small glint of calculation in their expressions made Belle's skin crawl.

"No," her father shouted, with less conviction in his voice than she liked.

"The young lady is engaged. To me," Gaston said, his arm still thrown up as though to hide Belle from view.

Rumplestiltskin stepped towards them. Though Gaston didn't draw his sword again, she noticed that he kept his back very straight and his eyes fixed on the creature before him, as though he suspected he might lash out.

The Dark One waved away his words with a flutter of his hands.

"I wasn't asking if she was engaged," he said, as though it was the most ridiculous thing he'd ever heard. Both his hands were up now. Belle filed this away for future reference. They crossed over his chest in the place where his heart should be.

His black, shriveled up heart, if Belle guessed right.

"I'm not looking for _love._ " His voice quirked up at the final word, as though he couldn't hide his distaste. "I'm looking for a caretaker, for my rather large estate."

Belle's frantic heartbeat slowed a little at this. At least he didn't expect her to marry him. She repressed a shudder at the thought. Still, she didn't know the first thing about being a caretaker. What did it even require? Though she'd watched the servants bustling around the castle, dusting and fetching clothes to be washed, she never thought to wonder what they did the rest of the time. But… she could figure it out.

He watched her thinking it over with a malicious smile on his face, as though he already knew which direction her decision was heading. Belle bit her tongue to keep from saying something withering to him. It wouldn't be the best start to her new life as a maid.

"It's her, or no deal," he added.

"Get out," her father said, his voice rising. "Leave!"

Gaston shoved his arm out, wrenching Belle back a few inches. She scowled. Did he really think she was so stupid she couldn't move out of Rumplestiltskin's path on her own? Anger flared up inside of her as she squared her shoulders.

And all of a sudden, she realized that Rumplestiltskin's eyes had found her again. Was it her imagination, or did they have a mischievous glint to them? Hmph. He would probably go off and laugh about this all afterwards, and never mind that it would cost them their lives.

No. Belle squared her shoulders. She wouldn't let him leave without making this deal.

"As you wish," he said, heading for the door.

Everyone watched him walk towards it. Her heart thudded against her ribcage. He didn't seem to be bluffing.

"No, wait," she called, unable to stand the thought of defeat.

Gaston's and her father's heads whipped around, their eyes wide with shock. They were acting as though the candelabras had suddenly spoken, she thought with a sting of bitterness.

Still, Rumplestiltskin halted, and she felt a surge of relief. When he turned around to face them however, he couldn't hide the small smile of triumph tugging at the corners of his mouth.

Belle placed her hand on Gaston's arm and then stepped around him, coming to a stop before Rumplestiltskin. She sucked in a breath at the thought of what she must say and what it would mean. Her family would survive tonight. Her kingdom would not fall to the ogres.

But only if she agreed to this deal.

"I will go with him," she said.

Her words were met with more giggling.

"I forbid it," Gaston cried out as her father shouted his objections too.

Belle's frustration bubbled up inside of her. She spun around to face them, trying her best to ignore the gleeful expression on Rumplestiltskin's face. They were nothing but performers to him, acting out a family drama for his satisfaction.

"No one decides my fate but me," she said, her gaze sliding from Gaston to her father, trying to make them _understand._ This was her life, and she would consign it to be spent as the Dark One's maid if it meant she could save the people she loved. "I shall go."


End file.
